"Bob Rutman founded The Steel Cello Ensemble in 1975. After intensive touring in the seventies the ensemble took a sabbatical until 1990, when Matthias Osterwold encouraged Rutman to move back to Berlin. There, he pursued the ensemble in several different line-ups. Hans Joachim Irmler's favorite instrument is the organ, but for the Steel Cello Ensemble, he also acts as guitar player. Kersten Ginsberg adds his own special twist to the typically krautrock-like "sewing machine drums" by using shuffle rhythms. The drums slog their way bit by bit through a standing wave of noise. At times they almost seem to drown in the sea of sound, but then slowly work their way back out again. This is certainly also due to the fact that Rutman, with his voluminous playing, rich in harmonic overtones, predefines a high degree of intensity to his fellow musicians. And then we have Mike Hentz, the Jew's harp playing performance artist and art professor. The sound of his instrument adds an almost humorous ease to the ensemble's music, on the one hand. And then, the pulse of the Jew's harp untiringly urges the other instruments on and complements Ginsberg's drumming very organically, on the other." (label info)